


A Lot to Lose

by Peril_in_Peace



Category: Guardians of the Galaxy (Movies), Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Avengers: Infinity War Part 1 (Movie) Spoilers, Gen, Grief/Mourning, Join me on the pain train, Post-Infinity War
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-05-01
Updated: 2018-05-01
Packaged: 2019-04-30 17:58:55
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 768
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14502468
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Peril_in_Peace/pseuds/Peril_in_Peace
Summary: Rocket finds out exactly how much he's lost.**Spoilers for Infinity War**





	A Lot to Lose

_“I could lose a lot. Me, personally…_ I _could lose a lot…”_

Rocket looked around at the humans. At the trees. _So many trees, here_ . He tried, so hard, not to look at the dust, blowing away on the breeze, settling in among the dead leaves and dirt… Groot was… Groot was practically _nothing_ , now. Nothing left.

Nothing left, anyway.

The guy with the arm… his gun had fallen next to where there was nothing left of _him_ .

Rocket took a deep breath and let it out, turning his head down.

It was a nice gun.

He mostly didn’t want it anymore.

Rocket wondered where Groot’s video game was. It had been Quill’s. When he was a kid. He’d brought it from Earth. From here. Maybe they had others like it. He could get Groot another--

He was glad the game was gone. Probably left it at the forge. He never wanted to see that damn game again.

Maybe Quill would want it, though. Something to… remember Groot by. He was a sap like that. Sentimental. Liked to… have things. Carry them around, like pieces of the people he lost.

He felt a weight drop beside him, the log he leaned on rolling just slightly. But he didn’t look. There was just nothing worth seeing. But Rocket heard the axe gently leaned against it… the handle against the scratchy old-growth bark, and he looked at _that._

That was Groot. Woven around the pieces of the axe, holding the head together.

Thor’s hand was as big and heavy as Drax’s, when it gently fell to Rocket’s head, between his ears.

And finally, he cried.

* * *

Some redheaded lady showed up the next day. The humies called her “Pepper” and were all pretty happy to see her. She set up communications with some other part of this dumb planet and they started to figure out who they still had and who they didn’t.

He didn’t talk to her much. The A.I. wasn’t bad, though.

Rocket spent the day with the princess genius. They worked and tinkered, mostly on trying to boost transmitter signals. Space was big. His family was far away.

When he dragged himself to eat something after sunset, the Pepper lady and her A.I., Friday, were talking with Rogers. They looked worried.

The A.I. played them something he recognized.

“It’s approaching, but we haven’t been able to open communications yet,” Pepper said.

Rogers shook his head. “Another attack?”

Rocket smiled for the first time since… well. “It’s not an attack. It’s a transponder. That’s my--our--ship. The _Benatar_ .”

“Can you contact them?” Rogers asked.

Rocket grinned.

* * *

The princess opened up the city’s shield to let the M-ship land on what had been a battlefield not 48 hours before.

Some guy with facial hair even more pretentious than Quill’s came down the ramp first. He looked pretty rough, though, so Rocket tried not to judge him too harshly. He was nice like that.

The Pepper lady walked up to him slowly, then hugged him. Held him.

Just once or twice, when things had been bad… really, really bad… he’d seen Quill and Gamora hold each other like that. Like they’d die if they let go. Like they’d have died if they were apart one more second before.

Rocket’s heart sank, and he looked away. His legs felt heavy, but he made himself move, one leaden paw after the other, toward the ramp. Toward the dark interior of the ship. Of home.

As he reached the bottom, he heard footsteps against the metal deck plates and he closed his eyes, a wave of relief physically rippling through him.

“Finally. Quill, you scared the--”

Nebula stepped into view, her face expressionless and lips set in a straight, silent line.

She had Quill’s Zune in her hand, the earbuds wrapped around it.

“He left this in the pilot’s seat,” she said. Rocket looked up at her, holding his breath. “Gamora--” she swallowed and dropped her gaze. “Well, anyway… the idiot was sentimental, right?”

She shoved the device at him and walked past as he took it.

“Was…” Rocket whispered, looking down at it. “Nebula?” He turned and called, desperately.

She stopped. Turned just enough to look at him with her left, augmented eye. “They’re gone, fox.”

_“I could lose a lot. Me, personally…_ I  _could lose a lot…”_

Rocket looked up the ramp, his claws numbing. He took a deep breath and turned away, looking out at this planet, that Quill came from, but never came back to.

He caught up with Nebula, walking silently back to the city.

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you for reading!
> 
> There's now sort of a follow-up here: [Interlude](https://archiveofourown.org/works/14577948)


End file.
